"A total of 145 bodies have been extracted so far from the damaged bogeys, out of which 123 have been identified and 97 handed over to their relatives," said state principal secretary (home) Debasish Panda

The death toll in the derailment of Indore-Rajendranagar (Patna) Express train at Pukhrayan in Uttar Pradesh, mounted to 146 with recovery of more bodies from the mangled coaches on Monday. The rescue efforts were abandoned on Monday evening, the authorities said the death toll could rise further as more than 70 of the 202 people injured were in a critical condition.

Hundreds of railway workers used heavy-duty cranes to remove the badly damaged sleeper coaches S1, S2, S3 and S4, besides the AC-3 (B3) bogey of the Patna-bound train, from the tracks on Monday.

“A total of 145 bodies have been extracted so far from the damaged bogeys, out of which 123 have been identified and 97 handed over to their relatives,” said state principal secretary (home) Debasish Panda.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh government filed a First Information Report against “unidentified railway employees” in connection with the accident after survivors complained that staffers may have neglected safety measures, The Times of Indiareported.

Kanpur Inspector General of Police Zaki Ahmed said the toll had risen to 146, while officials announced the conclusion of the search and rescue operations on Monday morning. Over 200 others were reportedly injured in the incident.

Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Monday had said a forensic inquiry into the Kanpur train accident would be conducted to look into all possible angles. “The statutory inquiry by the commissioner of railway safety into this accident has been ordered to determine the correct cause,” he said, adding there would be a separate investigation involving technical and forensic analysis by an appropriate agency to look into all possible angles. The strictest possible action will be taken against the guilty, he added.